


The Test of Courage

by jolimelon



Category: Battle Royale - All Media Types, Battle Royale - Takami Koushun
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-06-29
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:55:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,662
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24934117
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jolimelon/pseuds/jolimelon
Summary: It's a tradition for Shiroiwa Junior High students to brave the test of courage while on their class camping trip, but when Izumi and Mitsuru's class number partners are both absent from the trip, they must face the test together instead. There's only one small problem for Izumi... She's never told anybody that she is absolutely terrified of the dark!
Relationships: Numai Mitsuru/Kanai Izumi
Comments: 4
Kudos: 3





	The Test of Courage

**Author's Note:**

  * For [keitaiijima](https://archiveofourown.org/users/keitaiijima/gifts).



Izumi Kanai had a little secret. A minuscule one, really. And somehow nobody knew (though she suspected that Chisato Matsui may have clued in at some point). 

The truth was that Izumi was...

Terrified of the dark. 

She wasn't sure when the fear had begun, or why it had become so prevalent in her life. There was no major traumatic event to inspire her fear; it had just hit her suddenly around the time that she had entered junior high. Even during her final year, Izumi found it difficult to sleep if she didn't have a hint of light drifting somewhere into her bedroom. Even the faintest light did the trick, so long as it revealed to her that she wasn't completely isolated in the dark- that there was safety in the light somewhere nearby. 

The ninth-grade class trip worried Izumi for that very reason. The class would be going on a camping trip deep into the forest, and though the idea of spending a weekend with her best friends made Izumi excited, she also knew that there was very little light in the heart of the forestry. Camping with her family had been a different story altogether. They rented luxury cabins with electricity- but the class trip would have no such thing. The students would be pitching their own tents and the only light available would be either the sunlight or from a flashlight. 

Still, there was no way Izumi could miss such a large class event. She knew she had to brave her fears, and so, each night leading up to the trip, she attempted to sleep with less and less light around her. The results of her hard work were... very little sleep.

The day of the trip arrived nonetheless. The class boarded the bus and began to head toward the Shiroiwa wilderness. She sat with her group of friends, who crowded around the teacher in charge of the class, Hayashida-sensei. He was a good sport about it and played along with the innocent antics of the girls. In reality, he was probably just glad that the neutral girls were surrounding him rather than a group of delinquents or snobs. 

On the topic of delinquents, Kiriyama's little group was noisier than usual at the back of the bus, Ryuhei Sasagawa's voice, in particular, ringing all the way to the front where Hayashida-sensei cringed each time a curse word was hollered. No matter how often the teacher called out, "Language, please!" the boys were difficult to handle. Mitsuru Numai was among those boys, although he didn't yell the way that Ryuhei did. Then again, nobody could. On the contrary, Mitsuru had a voice that was both deep and soft, and he knew when to mind his surroundings. As he observed Kazuo Kiriyama a few seats away from the rest of the boys, staring blankly out the window, he looked at him with a deep respect and curiousity, as if searching for a deeper meaning within the smallest of actions from the other boy. 

Izumi couldn't help but catch a glimpse of this a few times, her eyes instantly gravitating to the loud noise but lingering on Mitsuru as he observed a person so dear to him. He was oddly sweet-hearted for a delinquent boy, at least when it came to interacting with girls. On the occasion that he locked eyes with Izumi, he'd acknowledge the girl with a curt nod and then attempt to shush or distract his loud friends. Izumi didn't particularly mind the noise, though the gesture was appreciated regardless. 

Soon enough, the bus arrived as far as it could without getting stuck too deep in the forest. As for the rest of the direction, the class would need to travel by foot before they would find the ideal place to set up their tents and campfire.  
Haruka did most of the carrying for the girl's group. She carried two backpacks (one on her back, the other on her chest) with a rolled-up tent hiked beneath each arm. Yukie followed behind her with a toolkit and a bag of medical supplies. Yuka, of course, had supplied plenty of entertainment for the girls. Hidden deep within the bags she carried was a radio, magazines, and other items she had promised were going to be a fun surprise. Noriko brought the snacks, and Chisato brought embroidery floss and beads to make special group bracelets with. Izumi was a little bit embarrassed by her contribution, as it wasn't much fun- she had packed her bag with several flashlights, and packs of backup batteries. Just so her fear wasn't so obvious, she had told the girls that she'd be packing 'survival items' which also included her father's old compass, a sewing kit, sunscreen, and bug spray. Nobody seemed to question anything. 

Absent from the trip were only two students; Shogo Kawada, and Satomi Noda. Most students didn't know Kawada well enough to miss his presence, but Satomi not being around had felt a little strange. Normally a stickler for attendance, Satomi had to miss the trip as a result of a cold so bad that she had ended up in the hospital for a night. Thankfully, she was on the road to recovery, but a class trip was definitely out of the question for her. Nobody knew why Kawada wasn't around, he didn't seem eager to go on a trip with the class right from the beginning. Maybe it just wasn't his type of thing. 

About twenty minutes of hiking through the wilderness passed before Hayashida declared that they had found the ideal spot, not too far from where the bus was, and close enough to the lake that they could run back and forth between it no problem. The campsite itself was pretty barren, an open space to fit all of the tents needed while still being able to host a bonfire right in the center. Hayashida-sensei wasted no time in putting the students to work as they began to set up their tents, sleeping bags, and supplies. The students who finished the soonest immediately got to work setting up wooden logs for the fire later that night. Meanwhile, Hayashida had seemingly disappeared. 

"This is child labour, I'm pretty sure," Yuka joked when she noticed that teacher's absence.

Haruka shrugged, with a laugh, she replied, "Hayashida-sensei doesn't look much like the type who can build, does he?" 

"And we do?!" Yuka blurted jokingly, "I mean, you do, sure, but **WE?** _As a unit?!_ "

The group of girls laughed at this, pleading for Yuka to not make any jokes until they had fully set up the tents. 

"It's not like him to disappear..." Izumi mumbled, somewhat worried. Only Chisato heard what she had said. 

"Don't worry, Izumi. I'm sure he's okay!" 

Izumi gave the other girl a soft smile, nodding her head along with her words of reassurance. The forest could be a scary place, and it wasn't like Hayashida-sensei to not help out his students, but she was sure there was a reason. Perhaps he had forgotten something on the bus. 

Whatever the reason, Izumi soon forgot she had even been worried in the first place after she and Chisato got tangled up while trying to help the other girls set up the tent and had to wait for Haruka to rescue them. 

Soon enough, the students had finished setting up the tents and campfire (minus lighting the fire itself), and low and behold, Hayashida-sensei was still nowhere to be found. Now, Izumi's worries returned, and this time she wasn't the only one. 

"That lazy bastard," Izumi heard Ryuhei Sasagawa grumble, "Makin' us do all the damn work while he runs off!" 

"I'm... I'm sure he just went back to grab something he forgot..." Yoshio Akamatsu had reasoned, to which most students agreed. 

"Shut up, fatso!" Ryuhei retorted, uncreatively, "He fuckin' ran off is what he did!" 

"Cool it, man," Mitsuru interjected, not particularly in the mood to stop a Ryuhei-Yoshio fight (if it could even be called a fight, given how one-sided things always were) "Let's just start this fire or something." 

"Fine," Ryuhei calmed in defeat almost instantly at the promise of fire, "Zuki, got a light?" 

"Mhmm," The tallest of the delinquent boys hummed happily, slipping a metal lighter out of his uniform pocket and popping open the top to reveal a flame all in one swift movement. "Of course I do. Couldn't live without it." 

"Tsukioka-kun, don't make me confiscate that lighter. I really don't want to have to do that!" A sudden authoritative voice came from behind the group, inspiring Sho to slide the lighter into his pocket just as quickly as he had whipped it out. 

Standing behind the group of students was Hayashida-sensei who wore an unusual black cloak over his suit- a look no student had seen on him before.

"My apologies for suddenly disappearing, everybody! I had a little surprise to arrange and I wanted to make sure that everything was in order first!" 

The students exchanged confused looks with each other. 

"Before we get to that though, I'd like everybody to pair up with their number neighbour, and follow me!" 

The students began to move around the campsite, trying to locate the student that they shared a number with. It took only a moment for each to be arranged, as the class had been familiar with their number partners for over a year at that point. By the end, only Izumi and Mitsuru remained alone, standing aimlessly in the center of the campground. Politely, Izumi raised her hand, while Mitsuru's hands remained shoved in his pants pockets. 

"My number neighbour is absent," the two said at the same time, causing Izumi to retract her hand in embarrassment. 

"I see," Hayashida-sensei mused, "Is anybody else missing their neighbour?" 

Nobody responded. 

"Ah! Perfect then! You'll pair up with each other instead! The numbers still work out just fine!"

"Hayashida-sensei?" A firm voice came from the crowd, belonging to Yukie. 

"Yes, Utsumi-san?" 

"It's starting to get dark, shouldn't we start the fire soon? It might be dangerous to go further into the woods at this hour." 

"Believe me, your safety is my top priority!" Hayashida-sensei reassured the students, "Where we are heading, I can assure you, will be completely safe. I've never had a student seriously injured on a class trip before and I don't intend to start now!" 

The pep in the teacher's voice did well to put the student's worries at ease. The students formed a line behind Hayashida-sensei, starting with the #1 students Yoshio Akamatsu and Mizuho Inada, and ending with the #21 students Kazuhiko Yamamoto and Yoshimi Yahagi. Izumi and Mitsuru stood towards the front of the line in the fifth row, as Izumi was the fifth female student of the class. 

Izumi had to admit (though she felt a little bad for thinking it) that a part of her was relieved that Shogo Kawada was absent. She didn't dislike him or anything, but compared to herself, he was so big and intimidating. She hadn't spoken more than one or two words with him since he had transferred into the class, and something about him had felt much more adult and distant than the other students- even compared to Kiriyama's gang. She was more familiar with Mitsuru, even if it wasn't by much, and she knew that he wasn't needlessly rude to any girls so it put her more at ease walking alongside him. 

The hike that Hayashida took the students on was longer than expected and included some turns away from the marked hiking paths where students had to duck and dodge the various forestry. Halfway through this, they began to get somewhat restless despite Hayashida's claims that they were almost there. Izumi didn't have to worry much about awkward socialization with Mitsuru, as most of the boys had broken the line at that point and began to walk with their friends regardless of Hayashida's instructions. 

By the time they had arrived, Hayashida was surprised to turn around and see that the neat line of students had become a messy crowd with hardly any pairs remaining intact. 

"Alright! Back in your pairs!" Hayashida laughed while shaking his head. Luckily, he wasn't one to anger easily. 

As the students shuffled around, now with significantly less room to do so then they had at the campsite, Hayashida continued to speak. 

"Now I know this must seem a little strange to all of you, being in the middle of this wooded area but there is a very fun reason for this!" 

Mitsuru made his way back to Izumi's side, giving her a brief nod in acknowledgement. 

"What we're doing here is a little bit of a top-secret Shiroiwa Junior High tradition! It's a test of courage!" As Hayashida said the last part, he moved some large leaves aside to reveal what looked to be a door frame made out of twigs and tree branches. It was worn with age and tied together using twine that had become a tea-stained colour in its old age. Hayashida pulled some extra twine from his pocket and began to tie the large leaves out of the way of the door frame. 

The student's reactions were mixed, many were excited, while many others felt disinterested or even annoyed by the idea of a test of courage. Izumi, on the other hand, felt cold with fear. While leaving the campsite, she didn't have the time to grab anything, and the only flashlight she had in her small shoulder bag was a tiny keychain one. It didn't cast much light, the range reaching only about a foot or two outward.

_Hayashida-sensei, I worried about you, and now... You're betraying me like this?!_

Maybe it was a touch overdramatic for a fourteen-year-old girl to feel so betrayed by something she should have seen coming, but Izumi couldn't help it. She didn't want to be embarrassed, especially in front of a tough guy like Mitsuru Numai. Briefly, she glanced over at him from the side, trying to get a feel for what he was thinking based on his body language. Based on his hands still being in his pockets, and his expression more bored than anything, Izumi could only assume that Mitsuru didn't care one way or the other. She almost wished she had been paired with a boy like Yoshio Akamatsu, who might be too scared himself to realize how scared she was too. 

The first to go through the test of courage were Yoshio Akamatsu and Mizuho Inada. They were given two minutes to get a head start before the second pair was sent in, and the same pattern would continue until all of the pairs had gone through. Only a moment in, the yells of Yoshio could be heard, accompanied by the laughter of Mizuho. Izumi didn't know whether that should make her feel better or worse. 

Once the #4 pairing had begun their journey, Izumi and Mitsuru took a step closer to the starting point. Izumi swallowed back her fear, holding her keychain flashlight tightly in her hands as if it were a weapon she may need to draw at a seconds notice. Mitsuru remained unbothered. 

"Ready, you two?" Hayashida asked, the sound of his voice enough to make the already nervous Izumi jolt in surprise. 

"Sure, whatever, let's get this thing over with," Mitsuru replied, cooly. 

Izumi nodded her head stiffly, taking a deep breath. She glanced at Hayashida who gave her a friendly wink, which eased her concerns for only a brief second before the teacher called out, "Annnnd GO!" 

In an instant, Izumi clicked on the keychain flashlight and pointed it at the path ahead of her and Mitsuru. He began to walk before she did, taking the lead, Izumi's flashlight mostly illuminating his back as they officially began the test of courage. Hesitantly, Izumi followed his lead. The path ahead was narrow, the earth had worn down presumably from the previous years doing their tests of courage, the size itself just big enough for two students to walk.

At first, it was quiet- not much was going on. About a minute in, they passed a bunch of fake spiders hanging from a tree, but luckily with Mitsuru in front, Izumi easily saw them coming ahead of time. 

_This must be what made Yoshio scream so loudly..._ Izumi thought to herself. She hadn't heard much screaming after that point, _So maybe this is as bad as the test of courage gets..?_

Along the way, few other tricks were presented- fake ghosts swinging in the breeze, a scarecrow that had fallen over the path was covered in what looked like fake blood, and other such decorations. It certainly gave Izumi chills, she wouldn't deny that, but it wasn't terribly scary either. 

_If it continues like this, I might just be okay._

But then, Mitsuru stopped walking. 

So focused on being overly aware of her surroundings, Izumi crashed into his back suddenly when she continued to walk after he had stopped. She took a step back quickly. 

"N-Numai-kun?" She mumbled, "What is it..?" 

"It's like... a house." Mitsuru answered, not too sure himself. 

Izumi took a step out to the side, scanning her flashlight in front of the two where sure enough- a house stood directly in the path, suggesting that the test was meant to be continued through it. 

"A house...?" Izumi repeated, swallowing back. A big, dark, spooky house, without even the moonlight to illuminate the path for them, having to rely only on her tiny flashlight in the utter darkness. 

"We can probably just walk around it." 

"Huh?" 

"You're scared of the dark, right?" Mitsuru asked so outright that Izumi nearly dropped her flashlight. Before she could deny it, he added, "It's not a big deal. Nobody has to know that we skipped the house. It'll just be between you and me." 

Izumi's mind had a million things to process all at once- how had Mitsuru known about her fear? Was she so obvious that everybody knew? Or, had Mitsuru been more observant than she thought? Did he just assume that all girls were afraid of the dark? And should she be offended by that even though it technically did apply to her? 

"Come on," Mitsuru said, pulling her out of her funk, "We need to make it quick before the next group catches up." 

Whatever the reason and however he knew didn't matter at the moment, all Izumi wanted to do was avoid the inside of that creepy house. Izumi nodded her head and gestured for Mitsuru to once again take the lead, which he didn't hesitate to do. The two began to walk off the path, sneaking around to the side of the house, the occasional twig or leaf crunching beneath their shoes. Surrounding the house was a worn down picket-fence that hadn't been visible until they had gotten closer. Izumi felt her anxiety spiking again until Mitsuru said, "We'll just hop it. Seriously, nobody will know." 

"Okay," Izumi replied, pulling her skirt down her waist a touch so that it didn't ride up too high while stepping over the fence. Mitsuru let her go first, extending his right arm for her to lean on while she climbed over. She mumbled a quick thanks when both feet were safely on the other side. 

But then it happened. 

Izumi should've guessed by the change of expression on Mitsuru's face, but it was too brief for her to analyze. All of a sudden, she felt a firm large hand on her shoulder, pulling her back into the utter darkness.

"What did you kids think you're doing?!" The mystery person said in a deep, gruff voice. 

Izumi let out a piercing scream and dropped to her knees. In the process, the keychain flashlight slipped out of her hand and hit a rock as it landed, causing the light to flicker out. Izumi moved her hands on the ground for only a second in an attempt to find it before the hand was once again on her shoulder. She screamed again, and this time stood, tears already heating her eyes as she began to run at full speed into the unknown forestry. 

Unbeknownst to her, the figure that had grabbed her was only a clueless gym teacher that had been a part of the test of courage. The other teachers arrived in separate vehicles to add an extra surprise, but of course, Izumi hadn't stuck around long enough to figure that out. 

Infact, she was so terrified that she couldn't even hear as Mitsuru behind her cursed out the teacher and then called out for her. 

"Kanai! Kanai! Wait up!" He bellowed out into the forest. Izumi, too focused on running and not losing her momentum as she dodged the trees, couldn't hear a thing over the thumping of her heart. Her eyes fixated on a hint of light in the distance where the moonbeams hit the lake and cast enough of a glow for her to find her way out of the forest. She choked back her tears and began the downhill jaunt to the light. 

Still lost in the forest was Mitsuru who, try as he may, couldn't seem to catch up with the petite girl as she weaved between the trees in search of light. Just as he caught her in his sights once again, he called out, "Kana--", and lost his footing while running downhill, his feet slipping beneath him, causing him to roll the rest of the way downhill. 

Finally, Izumi's hearing had returned to her as she heard a spine-chilling snap that she prayed was only a twig and not a human bone. She turned back to face the dark, scary forest and hesitantly, she called out, "N-Numai-kun?" 

There was no reply. 

"Numai-kun? Are you okay?" 

"Fuck..." She could hear a deep voice grumbling. She began to walk back into the forest, her steps slow but determined. 

"Are you hurt? Can you walk?" 

Mitsuru didn't reply again, so Izumi continued to walk forward, following the various noises of movement until she could finally see the shape of Mitsuru bent over at the bottom of the hill, his curly hair coated in old fallen leaves. He grumbled softly from the back of his throat, clearly not trying to make much noise. 

Izumi bent down to his level, trying to observe him to figure out what he had hurt. Her eyes had become somewhat adjusted to the dark, and thanks to the nearby lake casting the moonlight towards them, she was able to make out the shape of his body. His left hand was wrapped in a white bandage that had a reddish blob forming in the center. The longer she stared, the larger it grew. She only realized then that he had been successfully hiding his hands in his pockets all day, so she had no idea he'd even been injured. Mitsuru grimaced in pain, tightening his other hand into a tight fist as he fought the urge to yelp in pain. 

"I'm s... I'm so sorry, Numai-kun, you're hurt because of me..." Izumi could feel hot tears burning in her eyes again, only this time it was for a different reason. 

"Nah..." Mitsuru denied it, as he turned himself around and laid back on the ground as if in defeat. He caught his breath, single fist still clenched as the other bleed openly into the gauze that surrounded it. "It was already fucked up. Not your fault." 

"S...Still..." Izumi blubbered, "I made it worse." 

Izumi inched closer, taking hold of the boy's injured hand gently in her own hands, causing him to quickly shoot his eyes open and retract it instinctively. "It's fine, Kanai. Don't cry over it or whatever." 

"Wait..!" Izumi protested, "Just let me see it... okay?" 

Mitsuru's face went through a dance of emotions, showing a clear conflict between wanting to continue his tough act, while simultaneously wanting to do whatever would make the girl in front of him stop crying. After some internal debate, sympathy won over, and he extended his hand out for Izumi to see. 

Smiling meekly, Izumi unravelled the gauze around Mitsurus' hand, letting it fall to the ground as she took a closer look at the cut. It was deep, but not quite on the level where it would need stitches. Still, it was a nasty cut. 

"What happened?" Izumi asked, not sure if she'd get an honest answer or not. 

Mitsuru let out a low snicker, "Guess." 

"Uhm, kitchen accident?" She asked, somewhat innocently. In reality, she knew the answer would be something much grimmer than what was in her realm of understanding. 

Letting out a full laugh, Mitsuru replied, "Nah. Got into a fight. 'No weapons', y'know? But the guys always lie when they say that. Nearly got knicked in the face if I hadn't put my hand out to protect myself." 

Izumi's eyes widened at the story, the image alone far from her comfort zone. "No way..." she mumbled, "That must have been painful... Not to mention getting it re-opened just because of me..." 

Shaking his head, Mitsuru replied, "It hasn't really even closed yet. It's my own fault for doing a shit job wrapping it up."

"Oh!" Izumi suddenly recalled something, her posture straightening as she added, "Hold on!" 

While her shoulder bag hadn't been much help in the flashlight department, she did carry a few things that would prove to be useful in that very moment- medical supplies. Being in a big group of friends, many of whom were the sporty types, Izumi had learned to pack bandages and disinfectants in every single bag she carried. 

"This might sting a bit..." Izumi warned, seconds later spraying several squirts of disinfectant straight into Mitsuru's wound, the cleaner foaming on the surface of the cut. 

The boy let out a yelp due to the surprise, immediately gritting his teeth to suppress the noises of pain he wanted to make. "Fuck," he grumbled, try as he may to not swear as much in front of girls, "That caught me off guard, Kanai." 

"Sorry," Izumi mumbled a quick apology, "I don't want you to get an infected cut because of me..."

Izumi gave the disinfectant a few more squirts for good measure before putting it back into her bag. She observed quietly, her eyes much better adjusted to the darkness now, as Mitsuru's lips tightened and his brows furrowed in an expression that resembled a child eating sour candy. She grabbed a roll of bandages next, unravelling it as she wrapped it tightly around Mitsuru's injured hand. 

"Is it too tight?" Izumi asked, looking up at him. She caught him looking back at her, their eyes meeting in a way that made her face burn up (thank god nobody could see that). She looked down again, while adding, "I-If it is, I can-" 

"It's fine," Mitsuru replied, cutting her off before she could go off on a tangent, "It's fine like this." 

Izumi finished wrapping his hand, ripping off a piece of medical tape to hold the ends together. As she did this, she decided to ask Mitsuru a question, and only because she wouldn't look right at him did she feel bold enough to ask, "How did you know that I'm afraid of the dark?" 

"Huh?" Mitsuru grumbled, "I don't know. Just noticed it, I guess. Back when the power went out at school during that storm, I remember you looked pretty pale and shaky even when it came back on. And just now when we were about to start the test of courage, you looked like you were just about ready to pass out." 

"I..Is it that obvious?" Izumi asked, her face burning up again. 

"Nah," Mitsuru shook his head, "I don't think everybody notices things the way I do." 

"Not even my friends..?" 

"I doubt your friends are looking the same way." 

"What do you mean?" Izumi asked, lowering her hands to her lap. 

Mitsuru raised his now bandaged hand towards the moonlight, observing the new gauze that it was wrapped in. It was wrapped firm enough that he could feel the cut pressed together, but not enough that it actively hurt. Still, the lop-sided wrapping job was enough to make him let out an airy laugh.

"Fujiyoshi's got some competition on the nurse front, eh?" Mitsuru joked. 

"Is that so..?" Izumi laughed awkwardly, knowing fully well that it wasn't a serious comment. 

Mitsuru laughed quietly as well, lowering his hand. He continued to rest on the ground, still steadying his breath. "It's kinda nice down here, not gonna lie. Might just hide away here til the weekend is over." 

Izumi was going to rebuttal with some sort of light comment about how it can't possibly be that nice laying down in the dirt, but when she twisted around towards the sky to take a peek at Mitsuru's views, she realized how bright the night sky had become with stars. Pollution within the town had made it difficult to see any stars on most nights, but there, in the countryside where the only buildings were off-the-grid, the stars shone bright. And with the lake so close-by, the air wasn't as humid as they were accustomed to, it had a chill in it, with a cleanliness that made it feel easier to breathe. 

"It's beautiful..." Izumi replied wondrously. The stars looked like flakes of snow caught mid-air out in the galaxy. Some were larger than others, yet they all twinkled so beautifully. 

"Y'know, Kanai," Mitsuru began to speak again, "I'm not a big fan of the dark, either." 

"Really?" Izumi turned around to look at him again. Was he teasing her, or was he serious?

"Of course?" Mitsuru replied as if it were obvious, "Who the hell likes not being able to see what they're doing? And you never know who's lurking around waiting to jump out and attack. It creeps me out." 

Izumi gave a moderate smile, knowing that this was Mitsuru's way of trying to make her feel better. She was still embarrassed, having run out during the middle of the test of courage while the rest of the students were probably going through without any issues, but somehow she didn't feel that embarrassment while she spoke with Mitsuru. He had every right to be upset with her, and yet he wasn't. 

"I don't know why this started for me," Izumi began to explain. It was something she had never told anybody, not even her closest friends, and yet there she was, spilling her guts to a class 'bad boy', "I wasn't really afraid of the dark as a child." 

"When did it start then?" 

Izumi thought for a second, "I guess it was around the time that we entered junior high." 

"Huh..." Mitsuru mouthed in thought, "Well school is pretty stressful and stuff, right?" 

Izumi nodded her head, "When we first started, I kept having nightmares." 

Mitsuru gave the girl a curious look. It was only at that moment that Izumi realized how clearly her eyes had adjusted to the dark, as she surveyed the details of his face, able to see his expression, and their surroundings, without much trouble. 

"I kept having nightmares that our..." Izumi hesitated to continue, the words stuck deep within her chest, "our class was chosen for the program..." 

Slipping into quietness, Mitsuru looked sympathetic with her concerns, though unsure of how to reply. Izumi continued to speak. 

"I don't really have those dreams as often anymore but sometimes they would feel so real... I'd see my friends, or classmates who I think don't like me much, and they would be... They'd be trying to kill me, and I couldn't run away..." 

"Ain't this proof enough that we're gonna be fine?" Mitsuru said, gesturing around them, "No kids killing kids, just teachers in cheap Halloween costumes." 

Izumi's smile at that point was forced and awkward. She didn't want to be negative, but speaking so candidly with Mitsuru had made her dig deep into anxieties that she had kept hidden secret for so long. 

"But what if..." Izumi lowered her voice, despite nobody else being around. Maybe just saying the words would speak them into existence, and she didn't want to be the cause of that. "What if this is how they all begin..?" 

In one swift movement, Mitsuru propped himself up on his elbows so that his shoulders no longer touched the ground. The back of his uniform top was coated in soil, while a cloud of dust escaped his curls. "There's no way, Kanai," he retorted immediately, "And even if there is, you've got the right partner, alright? Imagine getting stuck with Akamatsu, huh? What's he gonna do? Scream and use you as a shield?" 

Izumi didn't want to laugh at the expense of another classmate, even if he wasn't present, but she was touched by Mitsuru's attempts at reassurance regardless. 

"And besides," Mitsuru added, "Look how far you made it back into the dark without a flashlight. Pretty tough of you." 

"You think so?" 

Mitsuru nodded his head firmly. "Totally. Real badass move." 

"But now everybody will know that I ran away during the test of courage," Izumi sighed. 

"We can head back, and just say we got lost." 

"I wonder if anybody will believe that..." Izumi mused, "There's not much sense in hiding it any longer, so I'll take the path by the lake this time. I might as well enjoy the scenery on the way." 

"Sure," Mitsuru shrugged, "Lets do it." 

"You'll go with me?" Izumi asked in surprise. She had been planning to go on her own, not wanting Mitsuru to get teased by his friends for running off course. 

"I'm not exactly itching to go back to that sad little test of courage," Mitsuru replied, sitting upright, finally running his hands through his hair to rid it of the messes of the forest, "What do I care what anybody thinks anyway?" 

"Your friends might laugh at you," Izumi warned. 

Mitsuru shrugged again, "I'm sure Hiroshi pissed himself or somethin' and they're focusing on that instead." 

At that, Izumi let out a laugh, finally feeling relieved enough to know that Mitsuru genuinely didn't care what the other classmates thought, a concept that was inspiring to Izumi in her current predicament. 

The two stood, this time their journey much slower as they exited the forest, walking towards the bright blue moon hanging above the vast lake. There was a path already marked on the ground, likely a popular trail for camp-goers alike. It was nicely lit thanks to the moon alone, so it was easy to see why it would be favoured compared to the unknowns of the forest. Mitsuru spoke very little on the way back but Izumi didn't mind, it was a comfortable silence, as opposed to an awkward one. It felt like they didn't need to say much at all in order to enjoy the moment. She had also noted, just by watching casually from the corner of her eye, that Mitsuru no longer hid his hands in his pockets. 

Moments later, Mitsuru stopped walking. This time more observant, Izumi was able to stop herself before running into him. 

"What is it..?" She asked, still with a touch of hesitancy. 

"Look," Mitsuru replied simply, pointing forward. 

Following the direction of his finger, Izumi gasped when her eyes fell upon _it._

Similar to the one at the beginning of the route, there was a makeshift doorframe made of branches tied together with old twine, standing on the path just feet ahead of them. 

"This must be the ending point..." Izumi whispered. "So that means..." 

Mitsuru grinned widely, "We're the first ones to make it, huh?" 

As if on cue, the sounds of feet could be heard in the distance, along with hushed voices. In a hurry, Mitsuru grabbed Izumi's hand, dashing to make it to the doorframe before the mystery students. When they got there, he immediately squatted and put his cheek in his (uninjured) hand in an attempt to look bored- as if he had arrived ages ago and was tired of waiting. 

"That's not possible!" An annoyed voice grumbled, belonging to Kyoichi Motobuchi. "How on earth did the two of you finish before us?! We were the first to solve the puzzle in the labyrinth!" 

Beside him, Kaori Minami stayed out of the drama but looked equally as perplexed. 

"Guess you're just slower than you think, Motobuchi." Mitsuru yawned. 

Izumi turned her head to the side, stifling a giggle. Who knew Mitsuru Numai was such a convincing actor? 

Eventually, all of the pairs of students had arrived at the finish line, followed closely by Hayashida and the rest of the teachers in costume. From there, the group was led back to campgrounds, but before the pairs were disbanded, Mitsuru gave Izumi one final smirk, and returned to his friend group. Meanwhile, Izumi's friends surrounded her with praise and applaud, and though she felt bad for doing so, she didn't admit the truth to anybody. 

Back at the campgrounds, Hayashida began the campfire and welcomed all of the students officially to the class camping trip, where he was met with a crowd of calls from the students. 

"That was so mean, sensei!" 

"A test of courage? In this year?" 

"Hey, why didn't you warn us ahead of time?" 

"Seriously, it wasn't even that scary!" 

Hayashida, unbothered by the cries, continued to smile. "Now, now! You all did a great job today! My students are very brave! But of course- there are two that came out a little braver than the rest! Kanai-san and Numai-kun, could you please stand up?" 

"Eh?" Izumi mumbled quietly, but before she knew it, her friends were forcing her on her feet. Similarly, Mitsuru was being pushed forward by his gang that was teasing him simultaneously. 

"The two of you finished the test of courage in record timing! There's a special prize for the first pair at the finish line!" Hayashida continued to explain. He pulled his hands out from behind his back, revealing two small bags. He handed a pink one to Izumi, and a blue one to Mitsuru. 

Immediately, the students called for them to open them, but before she did, Izumi gave Mitsuru a glance who had already been looking at her. He nodded his head, and she nodded back. Then, they both opened the bags. 

Inside was a pink ribbon that read 'BRAVE GIRL #1" and an assortment of candies. Among the candies was a thin keychain flashlight, similar to the one Izumi had lost during the test of courage. She smiled, bowing to Hayashida. 

"Thank you very much, sensei," said Izumi, standing to find that she was now surrounded by her excited group of friends who had taken it upon themselves to take her ribbon and pin it to her shirt for her. 

It was difficult for Hayashida to calm the class afterwards, as the group of girls had inspired the other students to get equally as excited talking amongst themselves in crowds. Somewhere amid this madness, Mitsuru had managed to subtly pull Izumi to the side, and she noted that he was wearing his new ribbon as well. 

"Like I said," Mitsuru spoke quietly but firmly, "Nobody has to know, right?" 

A smile erupted on Izumi's face, try as she may to water down her excitement. Admittedly, she felt a little bad taking credit for something she didn't actually do but hadn't she and Mitsuru braved a lot that night, anyway? In a way, they did deserve to win. At least she hoped so. If not, maybe she was more of a bad girl than she realized. She certainly felt much tougher than she did when the trip had begun. 

"Mm," Izumi hummed, nodding her head, "I won't say a thing!"


End file.
